Automatic crossing gate



Janv24, 1933. .1. R. BYRNE ET AL AUTOMATIC CROSSING GATE Filed March 19,1951 2 Sheets-Sheet l .gwuantoz 8 THE W E 1 aW' Jan. 24, 1933. J. R.BYRNE ET AL AUTOMATIC crzossme GATE Filed March 19. 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet2 I'ne .JIIIZ' Patented Jan. 24, 1933 snares stares PATENT orsica JAMESB. BYRNE AND DANIEL J. MACINT'OSH, 0F LIVERPOOL, NOVA SCOTIA, CANADA.

AUTOMATIC CROSSING GATE Application filed March 19, 1931. Serial No.523,868.

This invention relates to railroad crossing gates and more particularlyto an automatically operated crossing gate structure.

An object of this invention is to provide an automatically operatedcrossing gate which is actuated upon movement of the train within ablock or section adjacent the crossing so as to lower the gate prior tothe arrival of the train at the crossing. 7

Another object of this invention is to provide in a gate structure ofthis kind means whereby the gate will be raised by movement of the trainthrough the block.

A still further object of this invention is to provide hydraulic meansactuated by engagement with the train structure whereby the gate islowered and raised by contact of the train structure with the gateoperating structure.

The above and various other objects and advantages of this inventionwill in part be described in and in part be understood from thefollowing detailed description of the present preferred embodiment, thesame being illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein V Figure 1is a detail side elevation of the device constructed according to thepreferred embodiment of this invention;

Figure 2 is an enlarged sectional view taken on the line 22 of Fi ure 1;

Figure 3 is an enlarged sectional view taken on the line 33 of Figure 1;

Figure 1 is a detail side elevation of the pressure releasing member;

Figure 5 is a fragmentary sectional view of the pressure releasing valveoperated by the pressure releasing member;

Figure 6 is a fragmentary side elevation partly in detail of the swivelmounting for the gate structure, and

Figure 7 is a detail end elevation partly in section of a gate operatingstructure of this rind connected to two gates.

Referring to the drawings wherein like numerals of reference designatecorresponding parts throughout the several views, the numeral 1Odesignates generally a'pair of railroad rails of conventionalconstruction, and the numeral 11 designates generally a crossing gatestructure which is rockably mounted on a supporting post 12, the freeend of the gate structure 11 traversing the road and engaging a post 18which is disposed on the roadway oppositely from the support 12.

The gate structure 11 comprises an elongated gate or bar member 14 whichis pivotally mounted on the support 12 by means ofa pivot 15 and theinner end of the gate structure 11 is provided with a weighted member 15for normally swinging the bar it in open or upraised position,

In order to automatically lower the gate structure .11, I have provideda pressure member generally designated as 16, which comprises a cylinder17 within which a piston 18 is slidably mounted. A shaft or bar 19 isconnected to the piston 18 by means of a ball joint :20 which is heldwithin a socket 21 of the piston head 18 by means of a plate 22 and thepiston rod 19 extends outwardly through the top of the cylinder 17 andis provided at the upper end thereof with a bore 28 for receiving ashaft or bar 2a which extends upwardly therefrom.

A spring is disposed about the shaft 24 and at the lower end-thereofengages against a plate or ring 26,, and the upper end of (the spring 25engages against .an outstanding lug27 whichis mounted .On a swivelmember generally designated as 28. A washer or plate 29 is interposedbetween the upper end of the springr25 and the swivel head 27 and theshaft 24 is adapted to have sliding movement within the swivel head 27.T he swivel member 28 is pivoted to the gate structure 11 by means of apivotal member 30, which pivot 30 is mounted in the gate structure 11rearwardly otthe pivot 15 so that upon upward movement of the swivelmember 28, the opposite or outer endof the gate structure will belowered. i

A gasket 31 is secured to the piston head 18 and slidably engages theinner surface of the cylinder 17. The cylinder 17 is provided with aninlet port '32 adjacent the bottom thereof and an outlet port33, whichinlet and outlet ports are disposed adjacent the bottom of the cylinder,and a normally closed overflow port 34: which is disposed intermediatethe upper and lower ends of the cylinder 17 and is preferably dlsposedat a point adjacent the end of the upward travel or movement of thepiston 18 and is opened when the piston 18 rises thereabove. The inletport 32 of the pressure member 16 is con ne'cted to' a pump 35or thelike by means of a connecting pipe 36. This pump 35 is adapted to forcea liquid into the gate operating member 16 and comprises a cylinder 37which at one end thereof has an outlet port 38 which is in communicationwith t 19 gate c operating member 16 by means of the con meeting pipe36.

slidably mounted in the cylinder 37, and a connecting rod 40 is carriedby the piston 39 andextends outwardly through the head 41 of thecylinder 37. The cylinder is provided with an intake chamber 42 whichco1nmunicates with the interior of the cylinder 37 by'means of an intakeport 43 or the like.

The piston 39 is provided at the lower end thereof with a gasket 44which at the pe riphery thereof engages'the inner surface of thecylinder 37; The centralfportion 0L tile piston39 is preferably reduced,as at 45; so asto provide an intake chamber 46 about the piston 39,which chamber communicates with the intake chamber 42 by means of 'port46-. and a second gasket 47 is mounted on thep'iston 39 adjacent theupper end thereof and cooperates with the lower gasket 44 for sealmg thepiston within the interior of the cylinder 37. 'A partition or innerwall 48 1s monnted withm the cylinder 37 at a point spaced upwardly tromthe lower end thereof, and is provided wit-ha port 49 wnieh, 1s incommunication with thecylinder 37 and an outlet chamber 50 which is'disposed'be tween the lower face ofthe partition 48 and the lower endof the cylinder 37. V

' 'An annular plate 51 is mounted in thecyl inder 37 and is providedwith an opening 52 therethrough which alines' withthe opening 49, and agasket or resilient washer 53 is in terposed between the plate 51 andthe partition 48, this gasket 53having an opening therethrough aliningwith the openings 49 and 52; so that liquid within the cyl nder 07 canpass through the partiti'on'and the out let chamber 50 into theconnecting pipe 36. A check valve 54 is mounted within the cylinder 37engaging against the gasket 53. and

a a spring 55 engages thestem 56 of'the check valve soas to constantlyurge the check valve 54 into closed position.

This check valve 54 is provided as to permit the movement inonefdirection only of liquid through thecylinder 37 A plate v57 iscarried by the valve stem 56 and engages the upper .end of the spring55. The

lower end of the spring 55 is disposed in a recess or groove 58 in 'theplate 51.

plate 51 is also provided with an annular A piston generally designated39 groove 59 within which one end of the expanding spring 60 is seated,the opposite end of the expanding spring 60 engaging against the lowergasket44which is secured to the piston 39 so as to constantly urge thepiston 39 upwardly within the cylinder 37. The

connecting rod 40 is loosely mounted at the I lower end thereof in thepiston 39 and the extended portion of this'piston rod provided with alaterally extending arm 61 which is interposed in the path of the flangeof the wheel rotating on the rail 10.

An upstanding post 62 is mounted on the head 41 of the'eylinder 37 andis provided atthe upper end thereof with an inwardly extending arm 63which extends inwardly toward the piston rod 40. The piston rod 40 isalso provided with a'suitable member 64 which engages against the stud'62 so asthe pin 64 in engagement with the stud 62' and coactively keepthe arm 61 within the path of the flange 66 of the car wheel.

Through the use of the rotatable piston rod 40 and the stop, members 62and 64, the piston rod 40 will be forced inwardly of the c linder 37u)on enmwement with the V flange 66 of a wheel moving in one directionover the rail 10 but a wheel moving in the oppositedirection over therail 10 will swing the-arm 61 outwardly of the rail 10 and also swingthe stop pin 64 away from the stud 62 under the tension of the spring65. The intake chamber 42 is connected'to a liquid supply tank 67 bymeans of a connecting V pipe 68, and the supply tank or reservoir '67hasafilling pipe 69 whereby'thetank may be maintained in filledcondition at all times. The pipe 68' is connected preferably tothe tank67 adjacent the bottom thereoi'so that the liquid will gravitatinglyflow'toward the pump or pressure member 35.

A releasing member generally designated as 70 is mounted between therails 10 and at a point remote from the pump or pressure member 35,-thisreleasing member 7 0 comprising a supporting structure TlWvithiir whicha vertically movable member 72 is f slidably mounted, this member 72having a head 73 which is projected into the path of the flange 66 ofthe car wheel. The head73 at each end thereof is preferably tapered sothat the impact of the rotating wheel will not injure the head. Anexpanding spring 74s mounted within the base 71 and constantlyurges theslidable piston 7 2 upward I A stem 75 is secured to the piston 72 andextends downwardly through the base 71. A

releasing valve structure generally designated as 76 is mounted on asupport 77 and one end of the valve structure 76 is connected to thetank or cylinder 16 by means of a connecting pipe 78 which at theopposite end is connected to the outlet port 33 of the cylinder 17.

The opposite end of the valve structure 76 is connected by means of apipe line 79 to the tank or reservoir 67 closely adjacent the topthereof. A rock arm 80 is connected to the valve structure 76 androckably engages the stem so that upon vertical movement of the stem 75, the rock arm is rocked so as to open or close the valve 76. The overflow port 3st of the cylinder 17 is connected to the tank 67 by means ofa connecting pipe 81, which pipe is connected to the tank 67 above thenormal level of the liquid disposed therein. The spring 7 1 of thereleasing member 70 is adapted to rock the valve 76 into a normallyclosed position and upon downward movement of the stem 75, the valve 76is rocked into open position so as to permit the liquid within thecylinder 17 to pass through the valve structure and the pipe line 7 9back to the tank 67.

In the operation 01 this device, the pump or pressure member 35 ispreferably mounted on an angle so that the impact of the flange 66 willbe substantially at right angles to the movement of the piston rod 40.As each wheel flange 66 strikes the operating arm 61 of the piston 40,the piston is moved downwardly in the cylinder 37 and the spring 60 willbring the piston 39 back into operative position. This reciprocation ofthe piston 39 will force the liquid through the check valve 54 and theconnecting pipe 36 into the gate operating member 16. The filling of thecylinder 17 will force the plunger or piston 18 upwardly within thecylinder 17, which movement will lower the gate structure 11. The gate11 will be held in lowered position during the entire movement of thetrain within the block defined by the pump 35 and the releasing member 70. As each wheel flange 66 strikes the operating lever or arm 61, thepressure within the cylinder 17 will be increased and when the piston 18is moved upwardly to a point where the overflow port 3 1 is exposed, theliquid will flow through this overflow port and back through the pipeline 81 into the reservoir 67. This overflow port 54 is of sufiicientsize so that the piston 18 will be maintain-ed in upraised position bythe pressure within the cylinder 17. The outlet port 33 is normally openand as the cylinder 17 is being filled with liquid, the liquid may alsopass through the pipe 78 to the valve 76 which is normally closed.However, as soon as the wheel flanges 66 strike the head 73 of thereleasing member 70, the valve 76 will be rocked into open position soas to cooperate with the overflow port 34 in releasing the pressure ofthe liquid within the cylinder 17. It will, of course, be understoodthat the pump or pressure member 35 is disposed at a point remote fromthe gate structure 11 on one side of the crossing, this point being anydesired distance away from the crossing so that the gate will be loweredby the pressure of the liquid within the cylinder 17 before the engineor the front end of the train reached the crossing. The releasingstructure 70 is disposed on the opposite side of the crossing from thepump 35 and after the forward end of the train passes the crossing andthe wheel flanges 66 strike the releasing head 73, the pressure in thecylinder 17 will be released and the liquid permitted to grad ually flowback through the return pipe 78. The weighted end 15 of the gatestructure 11 will also operate to apply pressure to the liquid withinthe cylinder 17 so as to force this liquid outwardly of the cylinder 17and permit the lowering of the piston 18 therein for raising of theouter end of the gate bar 14.

While we have shown a guard structure mounted on only one side of acrossing, we do not wish to be limited to this construction as, ifdesired, a pair of gate members may be operated by means of connectingshafts and gears, so that each side of the tracks will be closed tovehicular tralfic when the train enters the gate operating block.

It is, of course, understood that various changes and modifications maybe made in the details of construction and design of the abovespecifically described embodiment of thisinvention without departingfrom the spirit thereof, such changes and modifications being restrictedonly by the scope of the fol lowing claims.

As shown in Figure 7, a vertically disposed shaft 82 is rotatablymounted on the support 12 and operatively connected to the pivot 15 bymeans of gears or the like, and a horizontally disposed shaft 83 isoperatively engaged with the shaft 82 by means of gears or the like,this horizontal shaft 83 being extended beneath the rails and connectedat theopposite end toa second vertically disposed shaft 84 which ismounted on an upright 12. A second gate 11 is rockably mounted on thesupport 12 and the pivot 15 of this gate is operatively connected withthe vertical shaft 84: by means of gears or the like so that tion,acylinder having an intake port near the bottom and a normally openoutlet port inter= medlate the ends of the cylinder, a piston slidablymounted in said cylinder and connected to said gate whereby to swingsaid gate intoclosed position upon movement of the piston in onedirection, said piston closing the outlet port whenthe'gate is openla-ndopening .the outlet port when the gate is closed, a pressure memberinterposed in the path of a car wheel for operation thereby, meansconnecting the, pressure member-to the cylinder whereby upon operationof said 1? pressure member to move said piston beyond the outlet portand coact ively swing said gate into closed position, anda releasingmember connected-to said cylinder and interposed in V thepathofthecarwheel whereby to release the pressure in the cylinder, saidigate uponrelease of the pressure in said cylinder being adapted to automaticallyswing into open position. V .2. A crossing, gate and operating meanstherefor, comprising; a gate, supporting means forpivotally mountingsaid gate,a weight carried by the gate whereby to normally swing saidgate into open position, a cylinder disposed adjacent said gate and hav-2 inga normallyopen outlet port intermediate the ends thereof, a pistonslidably mounted in said cylinder and controlling the opening andclosing of the outlet po t, meansvconnecting said piston to said gatewhereby to swing 5'29 said[gatedownwardly into closed position uponoutward movement of said piston in said cylinder, a pressure pumpremotely positioned from said gate, means connectingsaid pressure pumpto said cylinder, means car- 4' 3? ried by said pump and interposed inthe path of a car wheel whereby to operatesaid pump.

through'contact'with the car wheel, a pres: I sure releasinganember Iremotely disposed from said pump and said gate, and .means ,gflconnecting said cylinder with said releasing member whereby to releasethe pressure in said cylinder, upon contact of saidpressure releasingmeans with the carwheel.

,3. In a'crossing gate and operating means therefor, a pressure memberconnected to said i operating means saidpressure; member including acylindrical memberlhaving a normallyopen'outlet port intermediatetheends thereof,-a pistonslidably mounted in said 519 member and i closingthe port in one cycle thereof and opening the portinanother cycle, aliquid reservoir, connecting means connecting said reservoir with saidpressure member, acheck valve carried by said pressure meme 1 5 herwhereby upon movement of said piston to permit the passage ofa liquidthrough said cylinder in one direction, and means carried by the pistonand interposed in the path of v a car wheel whereby to movesaidpistonlon- ,Q gitudinally in said cylinder upon contact of the carwheel with said'latter named means. Intestimony whereof we hereuntoafiix our signatures. I v I i JAMESR.-BYRNE.. DANIE J. 'MA INT SE I

